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Hideup Coike Sizes Compared: Fullcast, 17mm, 13mm, Mini, Fish and Fish Gill
November 13, 2026

Hideup Coike Sizes Compared: Fullcast, 17mm, 13mm, Mini, Fish and Fish Gill

Most of what gets written about the Coike treats it as one lure. It isn't. A 23mm Fullcast that floats and skips under a dock is a different tool from an 8mm Mini on a drop shot in clear water. If you already own one Coike, this is about choosing the second and third.

Tackle box with different sized Coikes

Why Anglers are Talking About It

The tournament record is hard to ignore. Chris Johnston won the Bassmaster Elite at Santee Cooper on May 17, 2026 with 113 pounds, 12 ounces, skipping a Hideup Coike Fullcast under main-lake docks in less than ten feet of water. He weighed 32-8 on Day 2, then 29-2 and 30-15 the last two days. Not everyone was sold. Several Elite pros called it overhyped. The numbers still say the bait has a place when fish are pressured and cover is tight.

The Lineup

Fullcast: The One For Cover and Distance

The Fullcast is the casting weight of the group. Hideup says its rig has no rules, but the base setup is an unguarded hook, and because it floats, it works weightless as a topwater or on a heavy drop shot. That fits what won at Santee Cooper: skipping under docks in shallow water, where the bait has to travel and then hang in the shade. If you fish docks, laydowns, thin grass or schooling fish, start here. It is the least subtle of the family and the easiest to throw on baitcasting gear.

17mm: The General-Purpose Size

The 17mm is where most anglers should start. It casts, it falls slowly, and it fits a Neko hook. At the Pasquotank River/Albemarle Sound Elite, Wesley Gore finished 8th with 76-8 on a 17mm Coike rigged on a 1/0 Neko-style hook with a 3/32-ounce nail weight. For suspended bass, a 1/8 or 1/4 ounce weight lets the 17mm descend slowly toward fish holding high in the water column. Keep the weight small. A heavy one kills the slow fall that makes the bait work. A tungsten nail like the VMC Neko Pagoda Nail Weight lets you adjust that fall in small steps.

13mm and Mini: Clear Water, Light Line

The 13mm is a great choice for drop shot fishing, especially when targeting spotted bass in clear water. However, rigging it properly takes a little adjustment. A standard finesse drop shot hook isn't ideal because of the bait's dense core. A light-wire, wide-gap 2/0 hook works better, but the elastomer material can still interfere with hooksets. The trick is to push the hook deeper into the bait, well past the bend, to improve hook penetration. For an even more subtle presentation, the Mini is designed for finesse fishing in clear water where bass face heavy fishing pressure. Its ability to stand upright on the bottom and move naturally with slight current or line tension makes it particularly effective. Pair it with light spinning gear, smaller hooks, and long pauses to get the most out of its action.

Fish and Fish Gill: When the Forage is Key

The Fish Gill models replace the traditional Coike tendrils with fish-shaped fins designed to imitate small baitfish or bluegill. They're especially effective when bass are feeding on schools of fry or young bluegill. A slightly weighted urchin rigging system allows you to fish them like a jerkbait, creating a natural swimming action that mimics fleeing baitfish. The Fish Gill L falls between the Fullcast and the 17mm in size, offering a versatile option for different fishing conditions. Clear to lightly stained water is a great place to start, especially when bass have a good look at their prey. Target docks, brush piles, and open-water bait balls where bass are actively feeding on smaller fish. When bass are focused on a specific baitfish profile, the Fish Gill models are a strong choice. For a more unusual presentation that doesn't imitate any one type of prey, the traditional tendril-style Coikes are still hard to beat.

Rigging & Details 

  • The thick core blocks the hook gap. Purpose-made hooks like the Gamakatsu Ball/Urchin Rig Hooks and the weedless version are built for this problem.
  • Around heavy cover, Jason Christie won at Pasquotank with an urchin bait on a 2/0 double frog hook with a drop-shot weight to keep the hooks up.
  • Hideup warns that storing the elastomer with worm plastics can melt it. Keep Coikes in their own bag.
  • Durability is good, not unlimited. On Day 2 at Santee Cooper, a 6-pounder tore up Johnston's last Coike.

Who Should Pick Which

  • Docks, skipping, topwater, schooling fish: Fullcast.
  • One Coike for everything: 17mm.
  • Clear water, drop shot, light line: 13mm.
  • Pressured, spooky fish, ultralight gear: Mini.
  • Bluegill or baitfish forage: Fish Gill or Fish, in the size that matches the forage.

What it Means For Your Fishing

Pick the Coike by the job, not the hype. Decide first whether you need distance and buoyancy or a quiet drop shot presentation. Then match the hook to the core size before you tie on. Fish Gill and Fish are the best place to spend a second bait once you have a tendril Coike dialed in, and they cover the days when fish are feeding on bluegill.

Shop the baits

Sources: Hideup official: Coike Fullcast · Hideup official: Coike Fish Gill L · Hideup official: Coike series page · Johnston Coike's his way to victory at Santee Cooper Lakes (The Bass Cast) · Urchin Baits for Bass Fishing (Bass Forecast) · Is this the Year of the Coike? (Sports Illustrated) · Top 10 Winning Baits From the Pasquotank River/Albemarle Sound (Whiskey Riff) · The Strange Spiny Lure Taking Over Bass Fishing in 2026 (Sports Illustrated) · The Strange Spiny Lure Taking Over Bass Fishing in 2026, drop shot section (SI) · Crash Course: How to Rig and Fish Coike Baits (Game & Fish)

Filed in: bass fishing, drop shot, finesse, Hideup Coike, Neko rig, urchin baits
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